Chapter 69

When Daili regained consciousness, what met her eyes was a plain-colored bed curtain with faint peony patterns on it. It didn't look like an ordinary thing.

When she first woke up, Daili's head was dizzy, as if a rolling pin had stirred vigorously in her brain several times. Her memories were scattered, here and there.

Moreover, she wondered if it was just her imagination, but she felt that the couch beneath her seemed to be swaying.

"Madam, you're awake," suddenly someone spoke.

It was a very strange voice, neither masculine nor feminine, completely unfamiliar to her.

Daili gave a start. Invisible ropes instantly extended outward, pulling back and piecing together her fragmented memories. The previous scenes emerged clearly in front of her eyes.

The jewelry store, Nianxia and Bipo, the maid with the tea tray...

Daili suddenly sat up. But perhaps it was because she got up too abruptly or for some other reason. After sitting up, she felt dizzy and fell backward. However, before she could fall, she was held up.

"Madam, be careful."

Only then did Daili see clearly the person who had just spoken.

With willow-leaf eyebrows and almond eyes, the person in front of her was dressed in white, with a quiet and gentle temperament, like a graceful beauty stepping out of a painting of ladies. But her voice was extremely heroic, with a sharpness completely different from her appearance.

"Who are you? Why did you kidnap me here?" Daili pushed away the hand that was holding her.

It was impossible not to be anxious at this moment. She had disappeared without saying a word to Zhouzhou. Her son must be extremely worried.

But when talking to such a stranger, it was most taboo to show one's weakness. Only the high-ranking military generals in the northern region knew that she had found her son. Before figuring out who these people in front of her were, Daili would never expose any extra information.

Seeing Daili's defensiveness, the white-clothed woman smiled slightly. "Madam, there's no need to be so on guard. We are the lay believers of the Puhua sect, the tonsured monks. People usually call me Xiuniang. Madam can also call me that."

Daili was stunned.

Lay believers of the Puhua sect? Tonsured monks?

This title sounded so much like...

"Are you the Qinglian Sect?" Daili asked in surprise.

Xiuniang nodded with a smile. "Yes, Madam has indeed heard of us."

Daili's eyelids twitched.

Well, the Qinglian Sect that Qin Shaozong wanted to wipe out, and she actually ran into them?

"Why did you kidnap me?" Daili frowned.

"Marquis Wuan is vulgar and forced Madam to be his concubine. Madam is well-versed in strategies and has the talent to govern the country. It's really a disgrace for you to be just a favored concubine. Our master pities Madam for being in a difficult situation and can't bear to see you being buried. So he found a way to take you away from Baori City," Xiuniang explained.

Daili slowly lowered her eyes, covering the darkness in them.

This person who called herself Xiuniang could say the word "forced", which meant that the other party must know that she had once fled from Nankang County. Pretending to be stupid with Xiuniang at this moment would only raise the other party's suspicion.

Showing a little hesitation on her face, Daili didn't respond to her words. Instead, she said, "I'm a bit hungry."

There was a window in her room. The sunlight outside the window boldly shone into the room, casting large bright patches of light.

It was daytime.

She hadn't had dinner last night, so it wasn't a lie to say she was hungry now.

"Let me help you up," Xiuniang reached out her hand again.

Daili didn't refuse this time because she noticed that there was something wrong with her body. It had been a while since she woke up, but she still couldn't muster any strength, and there was a strange taste in her mouth.

"Did you give me something to eat?" Daili asked anxiously.

Traditional Chinese medicine was profound, and so was pharmacy. She was very worried that she had taken poison and would have to rely on them to detoxify later.

Daili had lain down fully dressed last night. Now, all she needed to do was straighten the folds of her clothes and put on her shoes. Xiuniang bent down to put on her shoes. During this process, her eyes inevitably fell on Daili's embroidered shoes again.

The shoes were made of brocade, with moon-white mother-of-pearl pieces on the surface, shining brightly in the sun. There was a large and plump pearl inlaid at the toe of the shoe, emitting a soft glow. It was obviously a rare treasure.

Xiuniang lowered her eyes upon seeing this. "You had a tiring journey yesterday. We were worried that Madam would be exhausted on the way, so we fed Madam a calming pill."

Daili was skeptical. "Is that all?"

Xiuniang was like handling a large doll. She first helped Daili, who had already put on her shoes, to turn to the side, and then helped her tidy up her loose hair. "Of course. Madam is our master's honored guest, so we naturally need to treat you with courtesy."

Within half a meter was an intimate distance. Daili wasn't used to strangers getting close, especially when she couldn't see the other person at the moment. She suppressed her discomfort. "Who is your master?"

"Madam will know later," Xiuniang only said.

After simply helping Daili tie up her hair and wash up, Xiuniang helped her out of the room. When they reached the door, Daili pushed away her hand. "I can walk by myself. I can manage slowly."

Xiuniang didn't force her.

Daili had suspected that the couch was swaying before. Now, when she walked out onto the corridor deck and saw the surging river, she realized that they were really on a boat.

There were green mountains on both sides of the river, and a few boats were floating on the river. The view was extremely broad. The wind carrying the moisture of the water blew on her face, bringing a bit of freshness. The sunlight danced on the river, creating layers of broken golden light.

Normally, people would feel relaxed and happy when viewing such a scene.

Daili was the exception.

Looking at the flowing river, she was extremely anxious. There was only one Jinshui River flowing from west to east near Baori City. Now that the boat was going upstream, she was heading west.

To the west was the territory of Yanzhou.

With one night and half a day, going upstream by boat was enough to travel dozens of miles.

"Madam, please," Xiuniang stood outside the corridor, keeping Daili away from the railing.

Daili withdrew her gaze and followed her to the main hall.

The main hall filled with the fragrance of agarwood was empty. There was no one there at the moment. Daili casually sat down in front of a table.

It was just a short walk through a side corridor deck from the room to the main hall. When she sat down, Daili clearly felt that her heart rate was abnormally high and she was very tired. She guessed it was because the medicine hadn't been completely metabolized yet.

So when Xiuniang asked someone to bring up the soup cakes, Daili ate them all up, not even leaving a drop of the soup.

Seeing that Daili had a good appetite, the smile on Xiuniang's face deepened. "What else would Madam like to eat?"

Daili said, "Please give me a glass of water. Not tea, but cooled boiled water."

"Please wait here for a moment," Xiuniang left the main hall.

Not long after she left, Daili heard footsteps. The person approaching walked steadily, neither too fast nor too slow, with a natural air of calmness.

Soon, a tall and slender figure entered from the outside.

The young man was dressed in white. His face was handsome, and the flowing cloud robe with embroidered cranes and gold-trimmed edges suited him perfectly. As he walked, the wide sleeves of his white robe fluttered slightly, like the wings of a white crane spreading out. In the agarwood fragrance filling the room, he looked extremely ethereal.

Diting

Meeting Daili's eyes, he showed a gentle smile. "Did Madam sleep well last night?"

Daili thought to herself that this person must be doing it on purpose. He had given her medicine, making her unconscious, and then asked her if she had slept well.

He was testing her personality right from the start.

"It's neither good nor bad," Daili said indifferently.

With her face set in an aloof expression, she was still astonishingly beautiful, exuding an air of haughty coldness and a strong sense of distance.

Diting's gaze lingered on Daili's eyebrows for a moment, but was distracted by the cinnabar mole on her forehead. When he regained his senses, the fleeting thought had vanished without a trace.

"Marquis Wu'an keeps a tight rein on his wife. I had no choice but to resort to this measure. I hope the lady will understand," Diting said as he took a seat opposite her.

"How should I address you, sir?" Daili asked.

Diting lifted his hand to move the small stove and placed the pottery pot on it. "I'm Diting. The lady can just call me Diting."

Daili seemed to be deep in thought.

Diting was the mount of the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, a auspicious beast that protected its master. Compared to "Xiuniang", the meaningful name "Diting" was obviously closer to the core of the group.

Daili said, "I heard from Xiuniang that you thought I had the talent to govern the country, so you brought me out of Bairi City. But I wonder where this great talent of mine comes from?"

Diting let out a soft laugh. "The lady need not be modest. I know that the refined salt was your work. There's also the dragon - bone waterwheel. Although it's widely rumored that the lady obtained it from a hermit surnamed Ma, this hermit..."

Here, Diting shook his head. "Can't be found."

Daili slightly raised her finely - arched eyebrows. "Are you so sure it was me? The salt lake in Ying County was previously occupied by a salt smuggler surnamed Li. Why couldn't it be that the smuggler had just figured out how to make refined salt, but unfortunately, before he could make it public, Marquis Qin got there first and took it?"

Diting shook his head with a smile. "It couldn't be him."

His words were so definite that Daili suddenly remembered that after the great victory at Taohua Ridge, at the bonfire feast, Qin Shaozong had said that Li Zan's power had grown at an unusual speed, and there might be a mystery behind it.

Now, it seemed that the mystery was sitting right in front of her.

Daili turned to look out of the window. The sun was shining brightly, and it was a beautiful day. "Yes, the refined salt was indeed my work. But I think there's a misunderstanding. As the saying goes, everyone has their own area of expertise. Just researching refined salt has exhausted all my energy in the first half of my life. I really can't live up to your praise of 'talent to govern the country'."

"Does the lady really want to stay by Marquis Wu'an's side forever? Marquis Wu'an has an inauspicious fate. He has a shallow relationship with his relatives. In the past, his parents, elder brother, sister - in - law, and wife all died one after another because of him. Moreover, the marquis has never been interested in women. He's not a good match. Not to mention that he had an agreement with the Wei family, his late wife's maternal clan, in his early years. If he wants to remarry, he can only marry a woman from the Wei family," Diting looked at the woman opposite him.

She was wearing a smoke - purple peony - patterned round - collar ruqun. Her figure was graceful, and she was the most beautiful among the crowd. Her peach - blossom - like eyes had slightly upturned tails, and there was a hint of laziness in her flowing eyes, showing a different kind of calmness from young girls.

The room was brightly lit, but she was even more eye - catching.

"The lady is as beautiful as a national treasure. Now, the marquis is very enthusiastic about the lady. But has the lady ever thought about the future? With the agreement with the Wei family, the marquis won't marry you. As beauty fades, love will wane. This is the way of love and hatred. He's always been cold - hearted towards women. The lady should find another way out," Diting said as he saw the water boiling and slowly picked up the pottery pot.

"Don't I know that I should find a way out? But the world is so vast, and the situation is turbulent now. Everywhere is full of dangers. I don't know where to go," Daili lowered her eyes, hiding the dim light in them. "The marquis, although he has many flaws, once promised me something."

Back in Nankang County, Mo Yanyun had helped her search for Zhouzhou all over the county. Later, in the north, he had even issued a notice to search for the child in every state.

It all traced back to Nankang County.

"Is the lady referring to the marquis's promise to find your son?" Sure enough, Diting guessed what Daili meant.

Daili nodded accordingly.

"The marquis can do it, and so can we," Diting put some dried melons into the teacup. "The lady asked where to go. I can try to give you an answer."

Daili suddenly looked up, directly ignoring his latter words. "Is it true? You can also find my son for me?"

Her black eyes were like peach blossoms in March, extremely bright, like the floating light on the surface of a stream under the sun.

Diting lowered his eyes, avoiding her gaze. "Of course it's true. Our believers in the Green Lotus Sect are countless and are distributed all over the world. We have people in Jiaozhou in the south and in the north. If the sect issues an order, it's not impossible to find your son."

"So, the way out you're talking about is for me to join the Green Lotus Sect?" Daili made it clear.

"Flowers bloom towards the Buddha, praying to be reborn in the Western Pure Land," Diting's smile was sincere, even with a kind of fanatical piety. "The so - called mud comes from the beginning of chaos. Lady, both you and I can be the purifiers of the mud."

Maybe it was the red - alert instinct deeply ingrained in her bones, and the strong repulsion towards the cult's ideas. Daili looked at the man in front of her, and a layer of goosebumps rose on her back.

But on her face, Daili showed a bit of hesitation and then changed the topic. "Where is the ship going?"

Diting said, "To Tianshui County."

Daili frowned when she heard this.

Previously, when she was idle in the mansion, she had looked at the map. If she remembered correctly, Tianshui County was already beyond the border between Sizhou and Yanzhou and was completely within the territory of Sizhou.

Sizhou was so far away from Zhouzhou.

She didn't want to live under someone else's roof, and she did want to leave. But it definitely wasn't the kind of leaving that would separate her from her son.

"What's the lady worried about?" Diting suddenly asked.

Daili didn't hide it. "Naturally, I'm afraid of getting out of the frying pan and into the fire. Although Marquis Wu'an is vulgar and sometimes unreasonable, in his mansion, I only need to serve him, and I have good food and accommodation. I'm afraid that if I go to another place, not only will the living conditions be poor, but I'll also have to serve several guests at once."

Probably not expecting her to be so direct, Diting was stunned for a moment and then shook his head with a smile. "Of course not. The lady is our honored guest. We won't force you."

Daili's hair stood on end because she somehow sensed an underlying meaning.

An honored guest, not forced.

But if she didn't cooperate, then she wouldn't be an honored guest...

Perhaps they had prepared a lot of supplies in advance. For three consecutive days, when passing by a ferry, the ship didn't stop to replenish supplies.

Daili watched the green mountains on both sides of the river receding. There was a fire burning in her heart, making her restless. Every hour, she was getting farther away from Zhouzhou.

Just as she was thinking about how to make the ship dock, the ship actually slowed down and stopped.

Soon, Daili found out why the ship had stopped.

"Sir, there are several floating boats on the river ahead. From afar, there are guards with swords. They look like officials. They're inspecting passing ships."